Interesting #CallofCthulhu session last night. Still processing what happened but it turns out that my group really hates pre-generated characters.
I think it's broadly a product of my encouraging them to be independent and to have agency. Present them with a adventure where there is literally none and they bucked.
They compared the scenario to a murder-mystery dinner, discussed walking away, then discussed group suicide. Things only settled when I improvised a problem they had to solve.
A few weeks ago, I bought a used copy of Unseen Masters, and I finally finished reading the first of the three scenarios "The Wild Hunt," which is usually regarded as the best one. You'd think I would've liked it given it's non-linear, very detailed, and well organized for it's era, but it's so dull and it proves that you can have too many red herrings. Also, it's treatment of certain 90s subcultures (Goth, vampires, raves) is so weirdly, eye rolling conservative.
Wrote a review of the Call of Cthulhu scenario Servants of the Lake, written by Glynn Owen Barrass, from Chaosium Inc.’s scenario anthology, Doors to Darkness.
A sleek little investigative/survival horror scenario that could still benefit from a bit more fat cutting to bring it to a light 2-ish hour play time, or to give more time for a longer, player-led conclusion.
@Rolistespod Brotherhood of the Wolf, for example, would make for a great Eberron adventure. Day of the Beast was made by Alex de la Iglesias who is a bona fide #CallOfCthulhu#ttrpg fan.
I already had the old one volume Masks of Nyarlathotep, and I already ran it once (as Masks of Tzeentch for Dark Heresy), but it is one of the best campaigns written for rpg.
Love all the extras for Kids on Bikes 2. Still haven’t played it yet, but I’ve got everything I need if I ever go.
#MiskatonicMonday#257: Glimpses of Terror: The Works of I.G. Payne—A Cthulhu by Gaslight Birmingham-set scenario for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, published by Chaosium, Inc.
Wrote a review of the Call of Cthulhu Gaslight scenario The Phthonus Cabinet, written by John Crowdis, an investigation-heavy scenario romping through the 1890s London dockyards with a novel Mythos threat.
Wrote a review of the #callofcthulhu scenario The Hoodlums, written by Alex Guillotte and Ian Christiansen, the seventh and final scenario in the Grindhouse Ultimate Collection.
A short and spooky dungeon crawl-esque scenario with a fun cast of characters, both the pregenerated investigators and the NPCs, human or otherwise.
This is 100% the start of a Call of Cthulhu story. A spaceship sent beyond the wan light of our sun into the dark starts returning nonsensical data, but then starts talking to you again?
Into #ttrpgs since the mid-90s, mostly playing #osr-style #dnd, #callofcthulhu, #shadowrun, #dsa, #harnworld, but open to others.
I write (not as often as I want) and paint (even less), and post moody b/w photos on my pixelfed.
In IT and might talk about some obscure computer stuff.
@CatDad One of my favorite #CallOfCthulhu scenarios is "What Goes Around, Comes Around" by Jeffrey Moeller, which appeared in The Unspeakable Oath 8/9.
I actually prefer scenario anthologies over longer campaigns, but I have a real soft spot for At Your Door, which is an epic campaign set in the early 90s. It's like the most early 90s thing published too!
Inspired by a conversation with @blabberlicious yesterday, I started reading all the short #CallOfCthulhu scenarios that appeared in White Dwarf, and I'm probably going to go through Imagine after that. A lot of stuff gets packed into a few pages, let me tell you! I'd read more, but my Kindle is in the bedroom and my wife is sleeping in - so it's Premier League time instead.
Vivian Wood. Sister, investigator, occultist, murderer. After a rather eventful journey to Pennsylvania, she finds herself on the dark road of eldritch knowledge. With a knock at her front door and a strange scratching at the back door, two worlds threaten to pull her apart.
The next episode coming on April 21st. Catch up if you wish at:
I’ve been reading way too many recently published #CallOfCthulhu scenarios that feature a perfunctory investigation before the Investigators board a train to creepy town that is a one way exercise in hit point and SAN attrition. Sure, some of the imagery is very creepy, but something is definitely missing, that being real problem solving and meaningful choices.
@lextenebris@Tim_Eagon From my recollection of reading Lovecraft stories, the protagonists survive more often that not. I think they survive more often than #CallofCthulhu investors.
From what I recall of the stories i read, the protagonists were the narrator to the story & thus Lovecraft needed them to come back to tell their story.